Arsenal midfielder Ethan Nwaneri is loving life working under the guidance of Mikel Arteta.
Having been a member of Arsenal’s academy since the age of eight, Nwaneri accomplished the dream of many by becoming a member of the first team.
Already this season, the 17-year-old has four goals at senior level, including a first Premier League goal, scored against Nottingham Forest.
While Arteta wants to be patient with Nwaneri, it’s abundantly clear that the midfielder is more than capable of playing at Premier League level.
Ethan Nwaneri wants to play for Arsenal with his brother
Arsenal fans want to see more of Nwaneri, particularly now that Bukayo Saka is sidelined with injury.
Based on him being a left-footed attacker, Nwaneri is the only like-for-like replacement for Saka however, Arteta is rather reluctant to expose him to too much so early into his career.
While opinions on whether the 17-year-old is playing enough continue to float around, the player himself is merely focused on doing more.
In a recent interview with the Gunners’ media team, Nwaneri opened up on his path to the first team, as well as speaking about his family.
The teenager shared an insight into his brother Emerson, who is a member of Arsenal U15.
“He’s a midfielder but he can play right back as well. He’s in the under-15s this year,” Nwaneri said, via Arsenal’s official website.
The young Gunner went on to say that he’s ‘really close’ to his brother, admitting that the pair have discussed their dream of playing together for Arsenal.
“There are three years between us so it would be really cool if we could both play in the Arsenal first-team together one day. We’ve spoken about that a bit and what that would be like, it’s something to aim for.”
Already coming through the academy alongside close friend Myles Lewis-Skelly, Nwaneri has been supported on his journey and now, he aspires to see his brother graduate too.
Who is Emerson Nwaneri?
Nwaneri described his brother as being a versatile talent, able to play both in midfield and on the right side of defence.
Another figure with an understanding of Emerson, who was born in 2010, is Arsenal academy expert Jeorge Bird, who shared his insight into Nwaneri’s brother on the Jeorge Bird Arsenal Youth blog.
In a blog entry, Bird explained that Emerson has been selected by England to attend an U15 talent camp, identifying the youngster as an ‘impressive passer and dribbler’.
While Nwaneri insists the pair aren’t similar in nature, their strengths certainly read the same, in what could be an interesting time for the Gunners in the near future, as Emerson will be eligible for a scholarship from 2026/27.
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